My best friend, Kerry, has consistently badgered me to get pierced with her. This summer, after our first year at separate colleges, I finally agreed. We had stopped in at 3rd Dimension in order to pick up some new plugs for Kerry's ears. Being the curious person I am, I convinced her to get a new piercing – simply so I could watch. She agreed to get a double tragus done – under one condition – I, too, had to get my tragus pierced. The piercing was one I had talked about for years. I always promised myself – "One day, sometime... eventually..." Today, it seemed, was the day. Now, it must be made clear that the only professional piercing I had ever gotten was a vertical eyebrow piercing. Needless to say, due to my lack of piercing experience, I was quite nervous to be taking the step up to a very thick cartilage piercing.
At A Glance Author dani7222 When A month ago Studio 3rd Dimension Location Appleton, WI Kerry was first. Within no time, her tragus was decorated with a double piercing. From her wincing facial expressions, I knew it had not been a pleasant experience. However, we were all very satisfied with the end result. Kerry now has somewhere in the proximity of 15 piercings – including her nape, nose, rook, tragus etc. Two of those piercings now include her new double tragus.
Kerry was far more excited than I was for what was inevitably next – it was time for my first cartilage piercing. The apprentice at 3D was designated to be my piercer for the day. She seemed nervous, uneasy – which only added to my apprehension. Kerry held my hand while I took deep breaths, mentally preparing myself for what laid ahead.
The apprentice unwrapped all of the sterilized needles, laid out the jewelry, and prepared everything for the piercing experience. Although my nerves were in high gear, I began to get excited. In a matter of minutes, I would have a piercing that I have wanted for years – but was too chicken to actually get. By the time the apprentice was prepared, I felt I was ready for the piercing.
Sitting up in the piercing chair, squeezing Kerry's hand, I was instructed to take 3 deep breaths. 1... 2... 3! The apprentice shoved the needle through – or what I had believed was through... I sighed and felt generally satisfied - not knowing my experience was far from over. I was instructed, again, to take 3 deep breaths. Confused – 1... 2... 3... The apprentice poked at the needle. She had not gotten all the way through, nor could she!
For minutes, the apprentice poked at the back of my throbbing tragus, attempting to break the needle through. As nervous as I had been, my nerves kicked back into high gear – jerked back to life by the screeching pain. She poked at the back of my poor tragus for what felt like forever. Finally, the professional piercer came in and took over. Within seconds, the needle had been freed. Although the experience was not yet over – I felt an amazing amount of relief.
Next – the jewelry. The piercer handed the reins back to his apprentice. Already, I had an uneasy feeling. As I sat in the chair, squeezing Kerry's hand – I shuddered as the piercer continuously corrected his apprentice. Each comment made me cringe – holding the pliers wrong, incorrectly bends the jewelry etc. After becoming frustrated with her, the piercer took the project back on. To my relief, the jewelry was in, relatively painlessly, within a few short minutes.
I looked in the mirror and instantly fell in love with my new piercing. It looked fantastic and amazingly, considering all the poking and prodding, was not terribly red, swollen or irritated. Although the experience had been a painful one, I instantly decided it had been well worth it. The 16 gauge tragus complimented my 3 lobe piercings and my helix piercing very well.
The fresh piercing stayed relatively unirritated for the rest of the day. It throbbed continually, and was painful to clean – but it looked amazing. A few Extra Strength Tylenols were more than enough to calm the pain – making the aesthetic aspect of the piercing far more powerful than the pain.
I followed my cleaning instructions very carefully. However, I was unable to rotate the piercing for several days. Still, I diligently followed my instructions – removing any discharge carefully, and washing it gently with Dial Antibacterial Soap. The piercing became slightly swollen, and remained so for about a week. I was very careful to take extra good care of it – not wanting to deal with a cartilage infection.
My hard work and precision paid off. Today, a little over a month down the road, my first professional cartilage piercing looks and feels fantastic. Although my experience proved to be more painful than the typical tragus piercing, I wouldn't take it back – given the choice.